10 Fitness Myths Debunked
During the past twenty years as a personal trainer, I’ve encountered some fairly good fitness misconceptions that deserve a reality check! Unfortunately, some of these have become so entrenched that people treat them like they’re etched in stone. I will attempt to rectify them in this article!
MYTH 1: No Pain Equals Gain
DEBUNKED: According to internet experts, building muscle doesn't necessarily mean experiencing pain. While it's a common misconception, the reality is more nuanced. The phrase should say, "No Pain, No Gain", signifying the relationship between effort, proper technique, progressive overload and muscle growth, none of which happens without some discomfort. Note: I’m not advocating extremism or injury!
Progressive overload means increasing weight, repetitions, sets or decreasing rest periods. This technique creates some natural muscle damage that leads to delayed onset muscle soreness 24-48 hours after the workout (though not all the time) and triggers muscular growth.
Myth 2: Lifting Heavy Weights Makes You Bulky
DEBUNKED: This saying is aimed at ladies who believe that picking up anything heavier than a 12-pound weight will turn them into muscular beasts. Nothing could be further from the truth as women generally don’t have the testosterone levels to bulk up. The extreme female physiques you see at the CrossFit games are not indicative of usual results. These are elite athletes who train excessively and many of them take performance-enhancing drugs to compete at this level.
Lifting a bit heavier gives you a pleasing physique with lean muscle. According to research in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, women who lift challenging weights can burn nearly double the calories compared to those who stick to lighter dumbbells.
Myth 3: You Can Spot Reduce
DEBUNKED: You might think you can target specific problem areas for fat loss, but in reality, it doesn’t work that way! A striking study in the Journal of Strength & Conditioning tried to replicate spot reducing but found it wasn’t possible. Your body will lose fat in the areas that it prefers, and most of that comes from good nutrition anyway. Anyone telling you otherwise is selling snake oil.
Myth 4: Muscles Turn To Fat When Not Working Out
DEBUNKED: This is one of the most pervasive myths out there! Sure, if you stop exercising, you might see some weight gain, but that’s not the same as muscle transforming into fat, as muscles and fat are entirely different types of tissue! When you halt your workouts, your body composition changes because you’re more sedentary, so simply adjust your diet accordingly and get back to fitness when you can.
Myth 5: Sweating = Weight Loss
DEBUNKED: Just because you’re sweating buckets doesn’t mean you’re torching fat. Sweating is merely your body’s way of cooling off. Each person sweats at different rates based on various factors like genetics or climate, but it doesn’t correlate to how many calories you’ve burned.
Myth 6: Machines Are Better Than Free Weights
DEBUNKED: The choice between the two depends on individual goals, fitness levels, and training styles. Free weights typically promote greater overall muscle engagement, functional strength, balance, and coordination through a wider range of motion and stabilization needs, while machines often isolate specific muscles and provide safety and ease of use.
Myth 7: Exercising Means You Can Eat What You Want
DEBUNKED: The belief that you can drown in junk food because you work out is a disaster waiting to happen. Unhealthy foods can lead to negative health outcomes such as weight gain, poor body composition, and increased risk of chronic diseases, a fact that exercise alone will not negate.
It's important to recognize that exercise and a balanced, nutrient-dense diet work together to support health and wellness. Balance and moderation are key to enjoying the benefits of both.
Myth 8: Static Stretch Before a Workout
DEBUNKED: While it’s important to have flexible ligaments and tendons, static-stretching before a workout can temporarily decrease muscle strength and power, inhibit the muscle's protective stretch reflex, fail to effectively increase muscle temperature, impair motor control, disrupt proprioception, and lack specificity to the actual workout movements. This combination of factors can increase the risk of injuries during exercise.
Swap static for dynamic stretches, which encourage the muscles and tendons to stretch while the body is moving, rather than when rigid. This will boost your range of motion and improve body awareness.
Myth 9: Squatting Deep Will Result In Injury
DEBUNKED: Our bodies are meant to squat to full depth. Training this way is not dangerous; it’s extremely beneficial. As we age we move less, sit longer and lose proper range of motion. For many individuals, focusing on proper squat form and depth can be beneficial for recovering from injuries. By working through a full range of motion, they can retrain their bodies to move as intended.
Myth 10: Abs Are Made In The Kitchen
DEBUNKED: Everyone has abs, they exist regardless of your diet. In fact, the ab muscles are the same as every other muscle in your body, and none of these are made in the kitchen either.
Abs are made by working your core muscles in the same way that you work all other muscles—by strength training. What you do in the kitchen REVEALS your abs!
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